I just heard back from my insurance company, and they absolutely won't cover it.

I'm really irritated. I need to figure out an escalation path, but I think because I went ahead and paid it I might be out of luck. I don't see how it's possible to have this problem in just 5000 miles. I wonder if this problem could have been triggered by a prior service on the fuel tank pressure sensor/regulator that caused my first CEL.

 

I think you absolutely should pursue this case. I don't believe you've forfeited your rights by agreeing to pay for it ... this absolutely should not be happening while the car is so new and still under warranty. I would imagine it would be hard for them to prove that you topped off the tank (which I think is a bit ridiculous ... it's not like people are pouring sugar down the tank ... while I understand that topping off is not a good practice, shouldn't there be a better design to protect from such dire damage? ... what happens when a gas station attendant tops off the tank? If the system is so fragile, perhaps MINIs should have flashing LED lights by the gas nozzle warning against topping off).

As far a channels to pursue in escalating the case, perhaps start with the dealer and continue with MINI (and perhaps your local Attorney General's office ... and let the dealer and MINI know you'll be doing this). Maybe someone else can offer more specific contacts in the chain of command.

Good luck and keep us posted. I really hope they do the right thing.

 

The chain of command is usually something like Service Dept Mgr - Gen Mgr - Zone Rep - District Rep - National.

As I said in my original post people put gas in the tank and stop when the nozzle won't let them put any more in. Period. That's how it works. There is nothing you can do wrong in that process, or at least there shouldn't be. They (the service dept) are totally lame anyway because MINI would just be paying them instead of you if they processed this correctly instead of sticking it to you and besides they have no proof you did anything wrong. Stop payment on your payment if you can and they still won't work it out with you. Use a credit card and dispute it and say they gave you no choice and you needed your car back. When they come after you for the money your argument is that it is a warranty item - which you can argue in small claims court as well. Just file a small claims suit on their *** if everything else fails. Grrrrr! I would never let them pull this crap on me.

 

This is a total BS deal. Please don't let them slid on this. Just keep it moving up the chain and document everything. Did you get the old parts? By law they are yours.
Fight them for all MINI owners everywhere.

 

Right on cue. . .6700miles, and I got my second CEL!! POS!

 

Obviously I don't know all the details, but it sounds to me like you have a very strong legal case. Make sure you keep detailed records of your attempts to get the car fixed, including all receipts, etc. You will need them is you have to go to court to get your money returned to you.

The fact that you paid the bill is irrelevant...you needed your car, and the dealership refused to honor the warranty. You simply demand to be reimbursed for expenses that you should never have been charged for pursuant to the warranty.

I would start off with the dealer's Service Manager. Make sure he or she is aware that you had prior trouble with the evaporative emissions system and that you have never ever overfilled the gas tank.

Unfortunately he or she is almost certainly going to tell you there's nothing the dealer can do because Mini USA refused to reimburse the dealer for the repair under the warranty because Mini's position is that the repair was needed because you damaged the car.

Ask the Service Manager to make one more appeal to Mini because if it is not resolved, you are going to sue the dealer and Mini for reimbursement. That likely won't work, but you never know...if you make them believe you are not going let them get away with this, they may realize it will cost them far less to return your money now versus you taking them to court.

Your next step is to send a certified letter to "Highest Ranking Officer" (you don't need his or her name) at Mini USA, and copy "Highest Ranking Officer" at the dealer via certified mail. The letter should just clearly lay out all the relevant facts (the prior repair, that you never overfilled the tank, your attempts to get your money returned, the fact that the owners manual makes no mention that the need for an expensive repair like this coiuld be caused by just overfilling the tank, and if that was so the design of the car would be considered defective anyway). Include copies of the service receipts, and tell them if you are not reimbursed within 14 days you are going to file a lawsuit to collect your money as well as all your expenses to do so.

If you don't get your money, the dollar amount in question is too small for it to make economic sense to hire an attorney. You will need to go through small claims court (you can get info for how this works in your state on the internet). Don't be intimidated by Small Claims Court. It's informal, and assuming you can explain your story concisely to the judge and show him or her your reciepts and records, the judge is not going to let Mini get away with this. Don't be surprised is Mini offers to reimburse you before you go to court...they don't want to go to court for this.

Don't let Mini get away with this!!! Please keep us updated with your progress.

 

and it's back again. 3 check engine lights in 6000 miles. If it's fuel again, I'm filing for lemon law.

 

Any progress on getting your refund for the warranty repair they made you pay for?

 

I hadn't done anything with it yet

 

Does anyone have the fault code that accompanies the CEL? I have one right now, P2402, which I can't clear with my scangauge. I plan on taking it in on Monday. I noticed prior to this a hiccup while driving. I assumed it was bad gas because I sometimes hiccup when I have bad gas..... Anyways I added some fuel treatment and soon after that I got the CEL. I currently have 800 miles and currently not happy eventhough I really really like my CM. I will keep the forum informed.

 

Google search: DMTL pump (Diagnostic Module Tank Leakage). I think part of the system that checks for fuel vapor leaks from tank.

 

Way ahead of you on the google search. I was trying to link the CEL to the gas I got since it happend shortly after and trying to link it to this thread since others were mentioning fuel but no one has a code. I only seen it mentioned once on the forum here which the OP had to get a fuel tank breather replaced. I hope its that easy. I haven't received any lag in performance so maybe it will be quick. I'll find out Monday.

 

This is absolutely horrible advice. All you will accomplish is hurting your credit, needlessly owing much more in interest and penalties, and potentially having your car repossessed and owing more legal fees on top of that. DO NOT DO THIS! The entity that holds your car loan (assuming you financed it at the dealer it's likely BMW Bank of North America) has nothing to do with the entity that warranties your car. Look at your warranty manual...it's "The Mini division of BMW NA". They are the entity responsible for the warranty, and if they refuse to make the required repairs, you need to bring a legal action against them (if it were me I would initially include the dealer as a Defendant too). If you stop making payments, the bank will deny that they have any responsibility for providing repairs, and you will be (legitimately) subject to all the problems I mentioned above.

 

3266 miles, and my CEL just came on tonight! I'll be taking it in tomorrow.

 

I'd be interested in knowing what codes are associated with the CEL. I had mine come on Friday and it shut off after 5 restarts on Saturday.

I just ordered an Ultra Gauge so I could look into it further when it happens again.

 

sorry to hear that Joe. Hope you are doing well otherwise. please let us know what turned on the light.

 

Joe, were they able to diagnose the problem today? Is this your first visit to the service department? What did you think of them?

We have not been back to the dealer yet. We are closing in on 4k miles, but the only issue we've seen is that one of the radio presets does not work as it should, and for us it's such a minor issue that we thought we would just wait until we need to bring the car in for an oil change.

 

I just got back from the dealer for my P2402 CEL and they had to change the DTML pump. The light is gone and just like the last 80 miles I drove with the CEL; no issues or loss of performance. Hopefully no more useless CELs or trips to the dealer.

 

I had barely 1,000 miles on my CM back in June when my CEL turned on. According to my receipt, the fault code was "DMTL pump minor leak" ... the dealer replaced the DMTL pump.

 

like apple, there's an app for that...mini has there's a cel for that.

 

Same thing at 834 miles and 70 miles later got the pump replaced. Not sure if this will be trend or not or just things to come.

 

Ok, here's my story. I got up the next morning and took off my gas cap and made sure it was closed tight. I then drove to work and called the dealer at 9am. I was told the service rep stepped away from her desk, so I left her a voicemail with me cell number. At 11:30, still no call back, I email my MA, just to ask if I need an appointment or could I drive by during lunch. Still not hearing back, I leave for lunch at 12:30, and start driving toward the dealer. 2 minutes on the road and I get a call from the service rep, apologizing for not calling me back. She asks what the problem is, and asks if the car is acting funny. I answer that it seems fine. She states that there are about 300 reasons that light could come on, but probably just the vapor leak sensor in the gas cap, could happen if I fill up with the car running. I tell her I'm on my lunch break now, can I drive by. She says they have no open bays, but I could come by at 11 am on Friday. I reluctantly take the slot. Light was still on the rest of Monday, but no longer on when I leave for work on Tuesday. Nothing changed between Monday night and Tuesday morning. I had driven the car several times after replacing the gas cap and the light was still on. Guess I'll just call and cancel the appointment, but I'll wait until late Thursday to make sure it doesn't come back on.

 

Joe, if I were you, I would still take the car in.

Even though the light is not currently, the code that turned it on will be stored in the on board computer, and they can read it.

The computer shut the light off after not detecting the issue for several drive cycles, but the light should NEVER be on, even if it's only once in a while.

It might point to an intermittent issue that could be become more serious with time, and you having them look at it now might end up heading off a more serious issue later.

 

it was the pump again for us. They're saying the replacement was defective. So that makes 3. Wife's picking up the car now. I'm going to call the dealership manager next week to negotiate my money back from service #2 above, with my leverage being the pennsylvania lemon law...3 of the same problem in 12 months (3 months in this case).

 

You really don't have any lemon law leverage (at least at the current time) because your car has been repaired.